The Lazarus Group, a North Korean hacking collective, has become a whale of the cryptocurrency TRON (TRX) through illicit activities. Recent on-chain data reveals that this group has accumulated over 137 million TRX, equivalent to approximately $11.63 million, as reported by security firm PeckShield. This represents 0.154% of the total TRON supply, which itself has a market capitalization of $7.5 billion and a total supply of 89 billion TRX tokens.
As of September 12, 2023, the CoinEx exchange was hacked, resulting in a $55 million loss, consisting of a loss of $6 million in Bitcoin, $18.5 million in Ethereum, $6 million in XRP, and a substantial portion of which was held in the Tron native token. Later, the Lazarus Group was identified as responsible for this attack, as confirmed by blockchain security firm SlowMist. CoinEx resumed deposits and withdrawals for selected cryptocurrencies on September 21.
Related Article: North Korea’s Lazarus Group accumulates over $40 million in Bitcoin holdings
The Lazarus Group currently holds around $47 million in cryptocurrency, according to a Dune Analytics dashboard. Their holdings include approximately $42.5 million in Bitcoin (BTC), $1.9 million in Ethereum (ETH), $1.1 million in Binance Coin (BNB), and Additionally, they have accumulated $640,000 in stablecoins, with Binance USD (BUSD) being their preferred choice. This is a significant decrease from the $86 million they had following their involvement in the Stake.com hack. The FBI and the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) have identified 295 wallets linked to the Lazarus Group’s cryptocurrency holdings.
The Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) has reported that Lazarus executed a series of high-profile heists in June and July, siphoning off nearly $200 million from targets that included Atomic Wallet, Alphapo, and CoinsPaid. Researchers believe that the group has been funneling their illicitly gained cryptocurrency into North Korea’s missile program, as reported by Toadayq News.
Despite their criminal efforts, North Korean hackers have stolen significantly less cryptocurrency in 2023. According to Toadyq News, their thefts have decreased by 80% compared to 2022, with a total of $340.4 million stolen as of mid-September, down from a staggering $1.65 billion the previous year.
